Monday, January 19, 2009

GOD BLESS DR. KING! The Legacy Continues

My MLK Holiday Reflections

1. I'm so excited that my nieces and nephew know about Dr. King. I must admit that I didn't teach them. They learned about Dr. King from school and from watching their favorite network, Noggin.

Joseph came home from school last week, excited to tell me about a hero he learned about. And to my surprise, the hero was Dr. Martin Luther King.
He told me how Dr. King loved everybody, and how he wanted to help everybody. He told me that his teacher let them hear Dr. King's speech. And the sweetest thing about this is that Joseph is actually excited about Dr. King. Everytime they show Dr. King's picture on television, Joseph exclaims with excitement. That's so beautiful to me.

Yesterday, I took the kids to Chuck E. Cheese. While sitting at the table, I asked Gabby if she knew about Martin Luther King. She basically told me the same thing Joseph told me earlier in the week. I was so proud. But what put the icing on the cake is when my Jazzy hopped into the conversation and told me that she also knows about Dr. King. (And she actually said, "Dr. King." She said that she learned about Dr. King from Lil' Bill on Noggin. (Thank you, Bill Cosby! You do a great service to our children through that show.)

How wonderful it is that Joseph, who is 7, and the girls, who are both 5, know about Dr. King. While they may not understand the historical significance of Dr. King's life and his legacy, they are aware that there once lived a great man that sacrificed for Americans to live free and empowered lives.

2. I am so glad that President Obama is being sworn into office on MLK weekend. How sweet is that?! I wonder what Dr. King would think about this achievement.
Would he be bitter, like some of his peers from the civil rights movement have demonstrated?
Would he understand that his sacrifice positioned us for this day?
Would he be proud of President Obama, First Lady Michelle, and those beautiful girls?
Would he have endorsed Senator Clinton over President-Elect Obama?
Would he be excited about visiting an American president that looks like him?
Would he be more critical, more tough, more demanding of President-Elect Obama because he has black skin, and because of the many sacrifices that were made for a president with black skin to be in the White House?

Starting tonight, I will be glued to my television. I will be watching history unfold. And the greatest thing is that I'm apart of it!

Congratulations America!
This is not just an accomplishment for President Obama and his family... This is not just an accomlishment for Black Americans... This is not just an accomplishment for the Democrats... This is an accomplishment for us all.

3. I'm so glad that John McCain is not being sworn in the day after MLK Day. How ridiculous it would've been for a man that opposed the MLK Holiday to be sworn in as an American president, the day after the MLK Holiday.
(This is off topic, but I'm sho' glad that I haven't heard Palin's voice lately.)

4. I believe that if Dr. King was living today that he would be a champion in the disability community. I believe that he would challenge social norms, fight for work place accommodations, demand fair and equal housing, and insist that the government recognizes that people with disabilities are indeed "people".

In fact, it is quite possible that Dr. King would've been disabled himself at this point. Often times, people will become disabled as they age, due to illness and/or injury. This possibility causes me to believe even more that Dr. King would've been in the ring, fighting for those of us, who are Disabled Americans.

I know that President Obama's inaugural committee have gone all out to make sure thae inauguration is diverse. I wonder if they included people with disabilities. How can I find that out? Anyone knows?

5. I realize that if it had not been for freedom fighters, like Dr. Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, Thurgood Marshal, Charles Hamilton Houston, Medgar Evers, Shirley Chisholm, Frederick Douglass, Nat Turner, David Walker, Harriet Tubman, Fannie Lou Hamer, A. Phillip Randolph, Malcolm X, W.E.B. Dubois, Homer Plessy, Dred Scott, and countless other unnamed heroes, Joseph, Gabby, and Jasmine would not be able to experience the freedom that is available for them today.

Happy MLK Day!

Spend time reflecting on what this day means to you.

This is not just another 3-day weekend.

This day was set aside to honor one of the greatest Americans to ever live.

Peace and love,

Angela Braden

4 comments:

Melinda said...

Angela, thank you for sharing. I too have been glued to the television, not wanting to miss one moment of history. You are so right, this is an accomplishment for us all! God's Peace ~ Melinda

Angela L. Braden, Writer, Speaker, Professor said...

And what a great accomplishment it is!

Anonymous said...

Historical Indeed! But it also puts the onus on us to be the best we can be and stop settling for less than our God-given potential.

Anonymous said...

Hi! I found your site while doing a google search on Obama today. I think you are wonderful! Thanks for sharing your powerful, authentic, brazen voice with the world!! May the Lord continue to bless you :)